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About The Observer. (La Grande, Or.) 1968-current | View Entire Issue (Oct. 15, 2020)
E XPERIENCED TO L EAD HHHHHHHHHHHHHHH 104-year-old barn fills In Business new role & Ag Life, 1B Write Me In! For a Safer Future Paid for by committee to elect Bill Miller for Sheriff. Follow us on the web THURSDAY • • $1.50 October 15, 2020 Good day to our valued subscriber Loyd Barker of Elgin State race Bylenga, Levy vie for House District 58 La Grande councilor faces challenger By Alex Castle East Oregonian Candidates touch on local Republican involvement in nonpartisan races By Dick Mason The Observer LA GRANDE — La Grande City Councilor Mary Ann Miesner wants to help the town’s businesses bounce back and regain the momentum they had before the COVID-19 pan- demic hit. But for her to con- tinue her work on that goal, she will have to prevail in the November election. Challenger Kristine Alf Miesner Rippee also wants to help businesses and take on other issues in place of Miesner. Miesner said her experience Alf Rippee would help her achieve her goals if voters grant her for another term. She has served on the council a total of 16 years in two stints, from 2000 to early 2015 and from early 2016 to the present. “I want to do everything I can to help,” said Miesner, a computer instructor for the Training and Employment Consortium who also served 19 years on the La Grande School Board. The councilor also aims to help the city tackle its housing issues. She is particularly con- cerned, in this regard, about addressing the needs of the homeless in La Grande. “I want to explore all poli- cies as we look at what we can do to the best of our abilities to help them as a community,” Meisner said. The councilor said the city council now is reviewing a recently completed city housing study. She said she believes the council should take action to address the See, Council/Page 5A Sabrina Thompson/The Observer Willow Elementary School in La Grande also serves as the offi ces for the La Grande School District. The district is the largest in Union County and has an 80% completion rate for students, the same as the state average. Local schools solid 2019-20 report cards give high marks for completion, staff retention By Sabrina Thompson The Observer UNION COUNTY — Most schools in Union County scored high grades for stu- dents walking away with diplomas, according to the Oregon Department of Education’s latest school report cards. The depart- ment’s most recent At-A- Glance reports also high- light the pitfalls small districts face. The reports provide a quick overview for eval- uating and measuring a school’s and a school dis- trict’s impact on its stu- dents, according to the Oregon Department of Education website. The department’s profi les look at the number of students enrolled and their demo- graphics, including race and economic status. The profi les also report the number of faculty and teachers at schools, the demographics of the staff and contain graduation and completion rates. Due to the coronavirus pandemic, the 2019-2020 report does not include statewide assessments data, class size data, ninth grade on-track and atten- dance data. Completion data Imbler and North Powder school districts each have a 95% grad- uation rate, while Elgin is furthest behind in the county with a 75% com- pletion rate. La Grande’s rate is 80%, the same as the state average. The smaller the dis- trict, the more only a few students can affect outcomes. “We had two stu- dents fall off the grid after we were shut down for COVID, and we Alan Kenega/Contributed Graphic Union County’s largest district is the La Grande School District. La Grande is also the most ra- See, Schools/Page 5A cially diverse district in the county. PENDLETON — Echo farmer Bobby Levy is the strong favorite in the Republican stronghold of Oregon’s House District 58 this November, but she still has to beat out Pendleton resident and Demo- cratic challenger Nolan Bylenga. Bylenga, 22, won the dis- trict’s Democratic primary with 53% of the vote, while Levy ran unopposed for the Republican nomination after Rep. Greg Bar- reto, R-Cove, opted not to run for reelection. House District 58 hasn’t been represented by a Democrat since Bob Jenson fi rst ran as one in 1996. Levy, 67, resides and works on a farm in Echo in addition to serving as president of the Eastern Oregon Women’s Coalition, a non- profi t she helped form that rep- resents regional issues and works to “bridge the urban-rural divide.” Her public track record also includes serving on the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife Commission. “I’ve already been advo- cating for the things that are really important to District 58 since 2006,” she said. “This is just a con- tinuation of what I’ve always been doing.” Levy had built a strong friend- ship with Bob Jenson, the late and longtime representative of House District 58, before Barreto suc- ceeded him in 2015. Jenson was revered as a dynamic represen- tative who identifi ed as a Demo- cratic, Independent and Republican and didn’t always capitulate to the party line. Through that relationship and conversations she’s had with sit- ting legislators, such as Sen. Bill Hansell, R-Athena, and Rep. Greg Smith, R-Heppner, both among the many elected offi cials in the region who have endorsed her, Levy said See, District 58/Page 5A Wallowa-Whitman might boost some camping fees Proposal would apply to several forest trailheads By Jayson Jacoby ONLINE Go to lagrandeobserver.com to see a detailed list of the proposed fees for area campgrounds. Baker City Herald BAKER CITY — The Wallowa-Whitman National Forest is proposing to increase fees at 28 campgrounds and to charge fees at 24 other recreation sites, most of them also camp- grounds, that are free now. The changes could start next summer. The forest is also proposing to eliminate fees at two camp- grounds and one trailhead. Dispersed camping on the forest — outside of designated campgrounds — will remain free. The Wallowa-Whitman is soliciting comments from the public about the proposal through Nov. 15. The forest hasn’t changed its recreation fee INDEX Business ....... 1B Classified ...... 2B Comics .......... 5B Crossword .... 3B schedule since 2005. The John Day-Snake River Resource Advisory Committee, a group of 15 residents of the region that makes recommen- dations about public land man- agement to the Bureau of Land Management and Forest Service, will then review the proposed fee changes, which could take effect in the summer of 2021. “Over the past 15 years, most of the fees have stayed the same across the national forest, and the majority of our recreation sites still do not require a fee,” Tom Montoya, Wallowa-Whitman supervisor, said in a press release. “However, we need to keep in WEATHER Dear Abby .... 6B Horoscope .... 3B Letters ........... 4A Lottery........... 2A SATURDAY Nation ........... 8A Obituaries ..... 3A Opinion ......... 4A State .............. 7A Lisa Britton/For EO Media Group Two Color campground along Eagle Creek in the southern Wallowa Mountains is among 24 campgrounds or trailheads on the Wal- lowa-Whitman National Forest that could begin charging fees in 2021 under a proposal. check with infl ation and main- tain what we have for the benefi t of the public. Fees are needed to continue the services we deliver at developed sites. The fees will also be comparable with other Full forecast on the back of B section Tonight Friday 32 LOW 69/47 Mainly clear Sunny and warmer DOMESTIC VIOLENCE AWARENESS MONTH similar sites that are adjacent to the national forest.” The Federal Lands Recre- ation Enhancement Act allows See, Camping/Page 5A CONTACT US 541-963-3161 Issue 123 3 sections, 22 pages La Grande, Oregon Email story ideas to news@lagrande observer.com. More contact info on Page 4A. Online at lagrandeobserver.com