2A — THE OBSERVER
TUESDAY, MARCH 17, 2020
LOCAL
DAILY Union school board names general contractor
PLANNER Plan for
TODAY IN HISTORY
Today is Tuesday, March
17, the 77th day of 2020.
There are 289 days left in the
year. This is St. Patrick’s Day.
renovations coming
soon
TODAY’S HIGHLIGHT
On March 17, 1988, Avian-
ca Flight 410, a Boeing 727,
crashed after takeoff into a
mountain in Colombia, kill-
ing all 143 people on board.
ON THIS DATE
In 1762, New York held its
fi rst St. Patrick’s Day parade.
In 1776, the Revolutionary
War Siege of Boston ended
as British forces evacuated
the city.
In 1912, the Camp Fire
Girls organization was incor-
porated in Washington, D.C.,
two years to the day after
it was founded in Thetford,
Vermont.
In 1936, Pittsburgh’s Great
St. Patrick’s Day Flood began
as the Monongahela and
Allegheny rivers and their
tributaries, swollen by rain
and melted snow, started
exceeding fl ood stage; the
high water was blamed for
more than 60 deaths.
In 1958, the U.S. Navy
launched the Vanguard 1
satellite.
In 1959, the Dalai Lama
fl ed Tibet for India in the
wake of a failed uprising by
Tibetans against Chinese
rule.
In 1969, Golda Meir
became prime minister of
Israel.
In 1970, the United States
cast its fi rst veto in the U.N.
Security Council, killing a
resolution that would have
condemned Britain for fail-
ing to use force to overthrow
the white-ruled government
of Rhodesia.
In 1973, U.S. Air Force Lt.
Col. Robert L. Stirm, a freed
prisoner of the Vietnam War,
was greeted by his family at
Travis Air Force Base in Cali-
fornia in a scene captured in
a Pulitzer Prize-winning AP
photograph.
In 1992, 29 people were
killed in the truck bombing
of the Israeli embassy in
Buenos Aires, Argentina.
In Illinois, Sen. Alan Dixon
was defeated in his primary
reelection bid by Carol
Moseley-Braun, who went
on to become the fi rst black
woman in the U.S. Senate.
In 2005, baseball players
told Congress that steroids
were a problem in the sport;
Rafael Palmeiro and Sammy
Sosa testifi ed they hadn’t
used them while Mark
McGwire refused to say. Mc-
Gwire owned up to steroid
use in January 2010.
In 2009, U.S. journalists
Laura Ling and Euna Lee
were detained by North
Korea while reporting on
North Korean refugees
living across the border in
China. (Both were convicted
of entering North Korea
illegally and were sentenced
to 12 years of hard labor;
both were freed in August
2009 after former President
Bill Clinton met with North
Korean leader Kim Jong Il.)
LOTTERY
Megabucks: $6.0 million
17-21-28-32-33-40
Mega Millions: $90 million
7-22-37-43-44-22 x4
Powerball: $130 million
9-23-26-30-32—PB-8 x3
Win for Life: March 14
16-17-18-47
Pick 4: March 15
• 1 p.m.: 4-8-0-6
• 4 p.m.: 4-1-1-6
• 7 p.m.: 3-3-2-7
• 10 p.m.: 9-1-5-0
Pick 4: March 14
• 1 p.m.: 2-5-3-2
• 4 p.m.: 1-9-3-0
• 7 p.m.: 2-7-3-9
• 10 p.m.: 7-9-3-1
Pick 4: March 13
• 1 p.m.: 9-9-2-5
• 4 p.m.: 7-7-2-6
• 7 p.m.: 7-1-1-5
• 10 p.m.: 0-7-1-6
DELIVERY ISSUES?
If you have any problems
receiving your Observer,
please call the offi ce at}541-
963-3161.
QUOTE OF THE DAY
“May your neighbors
respect you, trouble neglect
you, the angels protect you,
and heaven accept you.”
— Irish saying
By Dick Mason
The Observer
UNION — An Oregon
construction company is at
the starting line to renovate
Union’s schools.
The Union School Board
on Wednesday named
Kirby Nagelhout Construc-
tion as its selection to serve
as the general contractor for
the district’s $8 million ren-
ovation project.
The work will be funded
by a $4 million bond voters
approved in November plus
a $4 million matching grant
from the state.
Kirby Nagelhout has
offi ces in Pendleton, Bend
and Portland. The school
board has not offi cially
awarded the contract to
Nagelhout Construction
because the public has
until March 24 to chal-
lenge the selection of the
fi rm.
If no one fi les an objec-
tion by March 24, the fi rm
wins the contract.
Nagelhout Construc-
tion was one of four compa-
nies that submitted bids for
the Union School District
project. The school district’s
selection committee inter-
viewed representatives of
two companies, including
Nagelhout. The committee
recommended Nagelhout
Construction to the school
board.
Nagelhout Construc-
tion has 170 employees and
has built school facilities in
Echo and Milton-Freewater,
among other school districts
in Eastern Oregon.
Much of the work the
$8 million project involves
safety improvements at
all schools and updating
the school district’s aging
buildings, including
improving accessibility to
its high school classroom
building and gym.
“That is a major, major
concern for me. I want
people to be able to enter
our buildings with dig-
nity,” Union superintendent
Carter Wells said.
Other renovation work
includes:
• Energy effi -
ciency improvements
at all schools, including
upgrading the heating and
ventilation systems
• Improvements to
accommodate grades seven
to 12 at Union High School
• Improvements to the
district gymnasium and
athletic complex
Wells said the company
has done many similar ren-
ovation projects.
He said this experi-
ence should help it do its
La Grande resident running for Congress
Observer staff
LA GRANDE — A
third Union County resident
joined the fi eld of candi-
dates for the 2nd Congres-
sional District seat.
Travis Fager of La
Grande, a Republican,
tossed his hat into the ring
March 4.
“It’s time for a course
correction in Congress.
Time for a ‘career com-
moner’ not another ‘career
politician,’” Fager wrote on
his Facebook page in part
of what he said was his offi -
cially registered campaign
statement.
Fager in the statement
describes himself as a suc-
cessful business operator,
a husband and a father of
three who is a grateful par-
ticipant of the American
Dream.
“I am a common citizen
who is concerned as we’ve
watched a shift occur in our
country. In Congress specif-
ically, there is a disturbing
trend to fundamentally
alter our great nation. Like
you, I’m done with the typ-
ical results from the usual
politicians who’ve made a
career of compromising our
core values in exchange for
votes,” Fager wrote.
Fager is one of 10
Republicans running for
the 2nd Congressional Dis-
trict. Six Democrats also
are running for their par-
ty’s nomination in the pri-
mary. All are seeking to
succeed incumbent Rep.
Greg Walden R-Hood
River, who did not fi le
for re-election. Walden is
completing his 22nd year
in Congress.
Cove school dining hall set to open soon
New hall
provides much
more space
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SAFETY
RESPECT
The Observer
Union County will begin our roadside spray
program to control vegetation and noxious
weeds that are encroaching on road shoulders
and right-of-ways. In most locations, spraying
will extend four to eight feet from pavement
edges. Property owners who do not want herbi-
cides applied near their property must sign an
“Owner Will Maintain” agreement with the coun-
ty which must be updated annually. The county
will provide signs for the owners participating.
Property owners wishing to participate can sign
up for the “Owner Will Maintain” program at the
Union County Public Works Department located
at 10513 N. McAlister Road in Island City. Any
questions, please call 541-0963-1016
NOW HIRING:
INTEGRITY
By Dick Mason
COVE — No classes are
in session this week in the
Cove School District due to
the coronavirus. Still, there
is brisk activity near the
east edge of its campus.
Work crews are busy
putting the fi nishing
touches on the school dis-
trict’s new food service
building, which is set to
open when classes begin
again.
“Construction is wrap-
ping up and then we will
begin moving in later this
week,” Cove High School
principal Mat Miles said
Monday.
Tables, kitchen equip-
ment and food are being
transferred from the old
cafeteria into the new
building in the process.
The move will be short
in terms of distance. The
new building is less than
75 yards from the school
district’s old cafeteria and
kitchen, yet it will repre-
sent a quantum leap. The
new cafeteria building will
be far more spacious than
its old one. The present
cafeteria has a capacity of
about 40 students while
the new one will be able
to seat 200, making pro-
viding lunch to the dis-
trict’s nearly 300 students
much easier.
The school has encour-
aged students to eat lunch
quickly so they could
leave and make room for
incoming students. In
many cases, high school
students have been eating
their lunches in the hall-
ways or classrooms to pro-
vide more room for stu-
dents coming in to get
meals.
Cove’s small cafeteria
created scheduling prob-
lems, which cost students
class time, Miles said. The
new dining hall, he said,
will prevent this class time
from being lost.
work in Union with greater
effi ciency.
With the selection of a
general contractor, along
with an architectural fi rm,
BLRB Architects of Bend
earlier this year, the school
district soon will begin
developing a plan for the
renovations. Wells said the
school district will work
closely with Nagelhout and
BLRB plus the community
in developing a plan.
The superintendent
anticipates some work will
be conducted this summer
but much of the major
work will take place in the
summer of 2021 because
of the additional planning
required.
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Staff photo by Dick Mason
Tanner Collins cleans the windows of the Cove School District’s new dining hall Thurs-
day. Collins is the owner of Collins & Sons Professional Window Cleaning. The new hall
is set to open when students return to school in April.
The school district’s
building fund is paying
for the dining hall. Cove
schools Superintendent
Earl Pettit previously said
the district will not take on
debt as a result of the con-
struction project.
The kitchen and caf-
eteria the food service
building will replace
is in Cove Elementary
School, just west of the
new new structure. The
new building also will be
fi lled with new kitchen
equipment, replacing the
outdated appliances the
present cafeteria has. its
features include a walk-in
freezer and refrigerator for
storage, neither of which
the school district now
has. Miles said the storage
space is so limited now
that food has had to be
kept at sites throughout the
campus including a freezer
in the bus barn area.
The space where the
cafeteria is will be con-
verted into an area used
for providing counseling
services and special-
ized reading instruction
for students can be pro-
vided. These services are
provided in a modular
building on campus. The
modular will later be torn
down.
Mike Becker General
Contractor of La Grande is
the general contractor for
the project. The architec-
tural work has been done
by Design West Archi-
tects which has offi ces
in Meridian, Idaho; Ken-
newick, Washington and
Pullman, Washington.
This represents the
Cove School District’s
third construction project
Boise Cascade is an equal
opportunity employer and
encourages women, minorities,
and veterans to apply.
in at least the past 25
years. Two additional
classrooms were built
about 10 years ago and
a music room was con-
structed in the early 1990s.
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In response to recent statewide developments regarding COVID-19, GRH has made the decision
to postpone the following events: Annual Free Community Blood Screenings, Balance Classes,
and Parkinson’s Support Group. For the latest updates, visit grh.org/covid19. It should be noted
that there are NO presumptive or confirmed cases in Union County as of Friday, March 13, 2020.
While we are learning more every day, a clearer picture of COVID-19 and those groups most
affected by this disease is emerging, and we continue to refine our responses based on new
information. We continue to monitor daily the guidelines set forth by the Centers for Disease
Control and Prevention and the Oregon Health Authority, and will reschedule these public events
as soon as it is sensible to do so. We encourage you to remain vigilant with precautionary
measures against the spread of all respiratory illness by:
·
·
·
·
·
Washing your hands often and appropriately
Avoid touching your eyes, nose and mouth
Avoiding contact with sick people
Staying home if you're sick
Covering your mouth and nose with a tissue or sleeve
when coughing or sneezing
For additional information on those most vulnerable to this disease, what to do if you think you
may have COVID-19, and more; please visit healthoregon.org/coronavirus or call 211 for the most
up-to-date information. In addition, we have established a Coronavirus News & Updates section
on our website for the latest from your care team at GRH.
Get the latest GRH COVID-19 news and updates on our website at grh.org/covid19