Jeffrey Hecksel has been hired as the new Hood River County Administrator.  County Commissioners voted Monday to select Hecksel from five finalists for the position.  Hecksel served as City Manager of Glenwood Springs, Colorado for eleven years before leaving that post in December.  He has an Oregon background, spending six years as City Manager in Monmouth, and working for the city of Forest Grove for 12 years before that.  County Commission Chair Ron Rivers says Hecksel seemed to fit the community better than the other candidates, adding he is professional but relaxed.  Hecksel is expected to begin his role as Hood River County Administrator on August 15.  He takes over for David Meriwether, who formally retired from the position at the end of June but is serving in an interim capacity until Hecksel takes over.

North Wasco County School District 21 says recent testing at five school sites showed no actionable levels of lead in drinking water.  Testing was performed in mid-June at Dry Hollow, Colonel Wright, and Chenowith elementary schools, The Dalles High School, and the Wahtonka campus, which are D-21’s oldest buildings.  Of the 72 individual samples taken, none was above the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s action levels for either public water drinking systems or school water supplies.  Mosier Community School had a test performed separately and showed no actionable levels of lead in their drinking water.  Testing will be conducted at The Dalles Middle School before the start of school.  Oregon schools are not currently required to test drinking water for lead, but in early June state school and health authorities recommended taking such action.  Of the 72 individual samples taken, none was above the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) action levels for either public water drinking systems or school water supplies.

The Department of State Lands is signing off on a plan for wetlands mitigation in The Dalles.  Officials in The Dalles have been working with state officials on the plan for about years, particularly to deal with what are called vernal pools that are located on about 200 acres of land marked for industrial development in The Dalles.  Port of The Dalles Executive Director Andrea Klaas says the plan means there is now a specific timeline for development to occur on the parcels that were a part of this process.  She says a developer wants to come in and mitigate wetlands, they can take the plan and know they can develop the site in short order.  She expects the process will be streamlined to about nine to 12 months with this plan.

NORCOR officials are working on having unfilled bed space at the regional jail utilized by the state of Oregon and federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement.  Hood River County Commissioner and NORCOR board member Ron Rivers says state officials have considered constructing a new jail, but he notes NORCOR has plenty of room.  Rivers says the state rejected a formal contract two weeks ago, but they will rent bed space on an as-needed basis beginning in the next month or so, and there will be a similar arrangement with ICE.  Rivers says the need is foreseen by state and federal officials through November, even though he hopes it can continue longer than that.  He added the four-month period could bring NORCOR about $400,000 in revenue.

The Dalles City Council, acting in its capacity as the Columbia Gateway Urban Renewal Agency board, will consider a proposal to change the governance structure for urban renewal at its meeting Monday.  Currently the Council acts as the URA board, with a nine-member advisory committee in place to make recommendations.  The proposal would eliminate the advisory panel, and create a nine-person URA board made up of three Councilors and two members of the general public appointed by the Mayor, and single representatives of Wasco County, Mid-Columbia Fire and Rescue, Northern Wasco County Parks and Recreation District, and the Port of The Dalles.  The move would also require a budget committee made up of the nine board members and nine more members of the public.  The proposal will be considered tonight during the Urban Renewal Agency board meeting that will convene immediately after the City Council meeting that starts at 5:30 in The Dalles City Hall.

The Hood River City Council will conduct interviews Monday evening with seven applicants to fill a vacancy on the panel.  The spot on the Council became available when Laurent Picard resigned in May.  The seven are Tim Counihan, Tina Lassen, Scott Skelton, Megan Saunders, Teresa Ocampo, Sean Corcoran, and Elizabeth Whelan.  The interviews take place with the undercurrent of the discussions surrounding zoning changes to regulate short-term rentals in residential zones.  The Council has been unable to reach the required four votes on any plan with Picard and Becky Brun having recused themselves earlier in the process.  Monday’s Council meeting begins at 6:00 p.m. in Hood River City Hall.

Oregon Second District Congressman Greg Walden expressed his support for passage of major legislation to help combat the nation’s opioid abuse epidemic.  The Comprehensive Addiction and Recovery Act focuses on improving drug abuse treatments, addressing the underlying causes of addiction, and helping those most at risk.  The plan is an agreement between the House and Senate and passed the House on an overwhelmingly bipartisan vote of 407-5.  Walden says the act provides state government and local law enforcement more tools to tackle this epidemic head on, including support for increased education, recovery, and treatment efforts.  The Act will head to the Senate for final approval before being sent to the President’s desk for his signature.

The Dalles Public Works Department will be patching two service street cuts on East 12th Street just east of Dry Hollow Road on Tuesday.  Flaggers will be present to guide traffic through the work areas as the patches are completed.   Work is expected to take about a half day, beginning at 7:00 a.m.  Motorists are encouraged to use East 11th Street as an alternate route to avoid the work area.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers will temporarily prohibit public camping and alcohol use at Roosevelt Park between July 15 and July 17 during the Roosevelt Pow-Wow.  Officials add that day-use areas will be congested during the annual Native American event.  During the event, the park and the boat ramp will be restricted to day-use only between 6 a.m. July 14 and 6 a.m. July 18, meaning no public camping will be permitted.  Alternative camping locations include Maryhill State Park, Peach Beach Campark on the Maryhill Highway, Crow Butte Campground in Paterson, and Plymouth Park.  Boaters may use alternate boat ramps at Plymouth Park near McNary Dam, Umatilla Marina Park, and Crow Butte Park in Paterson during those times when the Roosevelt dock and boat ramps are congested.

The Mt. Adams Institute has received a $499,000 AmeriCorps grant from the Corporation for National and Community Service (CNCS) to support 58 AmeriCorps members in three career development programs:  VetsWork Environment, VetsWork GreenCorps and Public Lands Stewards.  The members support the efforts of public lands management agencies in a broad range of roles designed to improve access, use and conservation of our natural resources.  The VetsWork programs directly assist veterans seeking a career transition from the military to the civilian work force.  In addition to the grant funding, CNCS will make over $259,000 in education scholarships for the AmeriCorps members funded by these grants to help pay for college, vocational training, or pay back student loans.