LOCAL/REGION
2A — THE OBSERVER
TODAY IN
HISTORY
Today is Saturday, March 20, the
79th day of 2021. There are 286
days left in the year. Spring arrives
at 5:37 a.m. Eastern Daylight Time.
TODAY’S HIGHLIGHT IN
HISTORY:
On March 20, 1995, in Tokyo, 12
people were killed, more than 5,500
others sickened when packages
containing the deadly chemical
sarin were leaked on fi ve separate
subway trains by Aum Shinrikyo
cult members.
ON THIS DATE:
In 1413, England’s King Henry IV
died; he was succeeded by Henry V.
In 1727, physicist, mathema-
tician and astronomer Sir Isaac
Newton died in London.
In 1815, Napoleon Bonaparte
returned to Paris after escaping
his exile on Elba, beginning his
“Hundred Days” rule.
In 1854, the Republican Party of
the United States was founded by
slavery opponents at a schoolhouse
in Ripon, Wisconsin.
In 1922, the decommissioned
USS Jupiter, converted into the
fi rst U.S. Navy aircraft carrier, was
re-commissioned as the USS
Langley.
In 1933, the state of Florida
electrocuted Giuseppe Zangara
for shooting to death Chicago
Mayor Anton J. Cermak at a Miami
event attended by President-elect
Franklin D. Roosevelt, the presumed
target, the previous February.
In 1952, the U.S. Senate ratifi ed,
66-10, a Security Treaty with Japan.
In 1976, kidnapped newspaper
heiress Patricia Hearst was convict-
ed of armed robbery for her part in
a San Francisco bank holdup carried
out by the Symbionese Liberation
Army. (Hearst was sentenced to sev-
en years in prison; she was released
after serving 22 months, and was
pardoned in 2001 by President Bill
Clinton.)
In 1977, voters in Paris chose for-
mer French Prime Minister Jacques
Chirac to be the French capital’s fi rst
mayor in more than a century.
In 1985, Libby Riddles of Teller,
Alaska, became the fi rst woman to
win the Iditarod Trail Dog Sled Race.
La Grande Farmers Market bouncing back
Certain events to
return in 2021,
board considers
going nonprofit
By PHIL WRIGHT
The Observer
LA GRANDE — The La
Grande Farmers Market is
readying for its 41st season.
Market manager
Shaletta Baldwin said the
market opens Saturday,
May 15. She also said the
market will continue to
operate with COVID-19
restrictions in place, but
some events the market
had to drop for the pan-
demic in 2020 will be
making a return, including
Kids Day.
The market operates
May through October on
Saturdays from 9 a.m.
to noon and Tuesdays
3-6 p.m. in downtown La
Grande at Max Square
on the corner of Fourth
Street and Adams Avenue.
Baldwin said the market
in the past has carved out
some space for youths to
set up booths on a Saturday
to sell their own goods,
plus there are activities for
children, such as arts and
crafts.
“We usually get a really
good sponsor for this,” she
said. “Valley Insurance
already signed on.”
This year’s market also
is allowing the return of
artists and craftspeople to
sell their goods and will
provide space for a com-
munity booth. Baldwin
explained that space is
The Observer, File
Sarah Fischer of Evergreen Farm, La Grande, sells her produce Saturday, Oct. 10, 2020, at the La Grande Farmers
Market. The local market opens its 2021 season on May 15. While COVID-19 restrictions remain, the market is
bringing back some events, including Kids Day.
valuable for community
organizations and non-
profi ts because it allows
them to get in front of the
audience they appeal to.
Those were missing
from the 2020 season
because booths had to set
up 6-10 feet apart to meet
coronavirus requirements
for social distancing, she
said, so the market allowed
the sale of consumables
only. Hot food service was
not allowed last year and
remains off the menu for
the upcoming season.
“We have not gotten
cleared to do that yet,” she
said.
But the market does
anticipate providing live
music again, probably
about halfway through the
season. Baldwin said, by
then, enough people should
have received COVID-19
vaccinations to allow more
events to return.
“That is something we
are really looking forward
to,” she said.
The restrictions to curb
the spread of the virus last
year meant the market had
to curtail much of what it
usually off ered.
“We defi nitely were
impacted because in
years past we could have
40-some vendors on a
normal schedule,” Baldwin
said, “but last year we
topped out at 25.”
Yet, the vendors who
participated in the market
tended to do at least as well
as in previous years.
Bridge repair work starts soon near Elgin
The Observer
ELGIN — The Oregon
Department of Transpor-
tation announced it will be
repairing the Grande Ronde
River (South Elgin) Bridge
along Highway 82 starting
March 29.
The structure stands at
mile point 19.2, less than
a mile southwest of Elgin.
According to the press
release from ODOT, drivers
can expect delays up to 20
minutes for a day or two
beginning April 1, as the
work reduces travel to one
lane and fl aggers control
traffi c while crews install
temporary barriers down
the middle of the bridge and
temporary traffi c signals at
both ends of the bridge.
Once the traffi c sig-
nals are operational, wait
times will be shorter,
depending on traffi c vol-
umes, according to ODOT.
The temporary signals, lane
closures and construction
delays will continue 24/7
through the summer months.
“Please be patient and
plan extra travel time along
this route,” the state trans-
portation department urged
in the press release. “Obey
Alex Wittwer/The Observer
Above, the view Thursday afternoon, March 18, 2021, from under the
Grande Ronde River (South Elgin) Bridge along Highway 82 near Elgin.
The Oregon Department of Transportation plans on repairing the deteri-
orating bridge starting March 29.
Below, a map from Google Earth shows the scope of the project.
fl aggers and traffi c signals
at all times to keep everyone
safe.”
ODOT also advised
drivers to remember that
traffi c fi nes double in work
zones.
The bridge was built in
1966, according to ODOT,
and needs repairs to extend
its life. The existing concrete
overlay is deteriorating,
cracking and delaminating,
ODOT stated, and the bridge
joints are cracking. The
railing does not meet safety
standards, and the bridge
also is narrow, making
travel unsafe for pedestrians
and bicyclists.
The $1.3 million project
includes removing and
replacing the concrete
overlay and bridge rail and
replacing the deck joints to
repair deteriorating bridge
conditions and improve
safety for motorists, bicy-
clists and pedestrians.
ODOT plans to complete the
project and lift lane restric-
tions by July 15.
For more information
on this and other state
road projects in Eastern
Oregon, visit www.tinyurl.
com/odot5.
Wallowa Public Library off ers spring break adventures
By ELLEN MORRIS BISHOP
Wallowa County Chieftain
WALLOWA — Spring
break is coming.
That means that restless,
cabin-fevered feet will want
to go exploring. But with
COVID-19 still lurking
in Wallowa County com-
munities and elsewhere,
exploring is not so simple.
The Wallowa Public
Library is coming to the
rescue. Its “Book an Adven-
ture” program will get
you traveling on the magic
carpet of books.
“Book an Adventure
is a program for all ages
to encourage continued
reading and literacy devel-
opment as the days get
warmer and through the
spring break holiday from
school,” Wallowa Public
Library Director Holly
Goebel said. “We want
people to be able to travel
safely, and books and your
imagination are great ways
to do that.”
Patrons of all ages can
stop by the library to check
out a book and pick up “An
Adventure Itinerary” to
take home and read. They
SATURDAY, MARCH 20, 2021
Ellen Morris Bishop/For the Wallowa County Chieftain
Wallowa Public Library Director Holly Goebel’s “Book an Adventure” pro-
gram encourages people to travel safely with books over spring break.
can then return the com-
pleted itinerary for a prize.
There’s no limit on the
number of “trips” to take to
encourage folks to read the
rest of March.
The itinerary card asks
you to list the book title, the
reader’s favorite part, and
“Where I went.” That could
be anywhere the book takes
you, Goebel said. It could
be a science-fi ction book
that takes you to Mars, or
to the future. It could be
a book that’s helping you
plan summer backpacking
trips in the Wallowas or a
trip into your backyard to
look at bugs. Especially for
children, it could be a book
that takes them to fairy-tale
places or for a ride on a fi re
truck.
“Itineraries will be
accepted for prizes through
the month of April because
we all know everyone reads
at diff erent rates, and with
a pandemic continuing to
make leaving home chal-
lenging, we want to be as
fl exible as possible,” Goebel
said.
The prizes include jump
ropes, Legos, nerf rocket
shooters, chalk, books or
an entry into a raffl e for
gift card for children. Adult
prizes include a Bookloft
gift card and a Blue Banana
gift card.
The project is funded by
the Friends of the Wallowa
Public Library.
Wallowa Public Library
is open 9 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.
Wednesday, 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.
Thursday, 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.
Friday and 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.
on the fi rst and third Satur-
days of each month.
“The library is open
for in-person browsing
by appointment, keeping
groups to one cohort/family
at a time, and masks are
required for anyone 5 years
and older,” Goebel said.
“We also off er at-the-door
pick-up for patrons not
ready to browse in person,
or who just want to grab
their items and go.”
Baldwin said the market
conducted a postseason
survey and found most
vendors matched their sales
or did better than they
had in 2019. And while
the market started slow, it
didn’t end that way.
“As soon as the season
was up and running, every-
thing was pretty much back
to normal as far as transac-
tions go,” she said.
Still, fewer vendors
meant the La Grande
Farmers Market as a busi-
ness struggled.
The market operates on
a budget of about $20,000
a year, Baldwin said, and
much of that money goes to
paying the market manager
and a promotions manager.
Without the usual number
of vendors, she said, the
market has sought sponsors
and partnerships to help
cover fi nancial gaps.
“Whatever it takes to
get the show to go on,
we’re doing it,” Baldwin
said.
That includes exploring
the possibility of a 501c3
charitable nonprofi t.
“We are considering it,”
she said.
Baldwin said the board
has talked about becoming
a nonprofi t because it
opens up the market to
some revenue streams,
primarily grants, that it
doesn’t qualify for now. It
also would mean people
who donate to the market
could claim that charitable
donation on their taxes.
Becoming a 501c3 is a
lengthy process, she said,
and would take some time.
Baldwin also encour-
aged current and prospec-
tive vendors to attend the
market’s annual vendor
meeting, this year on
April 9 via the streaming
meeting platform Zoom.
The meeting provides
information to new vendors
and allows veteran ven-
dors to fi rm up their com-
mitments. This year, the
board also is looking to fi ll
a vacancy.
The 10-member board
is one shy, Baldwin said,
and seeking someone who
is community-minded and
has an interest in local food
systems.
For more information
about the market, including
the annual meeting, visit
www.lagrandefarmers-
market.org.
21 meet fi ling deadline
for school board elections
Four races are
contested: 1 in
Cove, 2 in Imbler,
1 in La Grande
By DICK MASON
The Observer
UNION COUNTY —
The Union County school
board election roster now
is set.
A total of 21 candi-
dates met the fi ling dead-
line Thursday, March 15,
for the May 18 election.
The candidates will be
running for 17 open posi-
tions, including four that
are to be contested. The
Imbler School Board has
two contested races and
the La Grande and Cove
boards each have one.
The following is a
breakdown of the posi-
tions up for election and
candidates who have fi led
based in the information
the candidates provided
to the offi ce of the Union
County clerk.
Cove School Board
One of the board’s
three seats up for election
will be contested.
Chris Thew, an athletic
trainer, will challenge
incumbent Andy Lindsey,
a civil engineer, for Posi-
tion 1.
Positions 3 and 4 also
are up for election and
incumbents fi led for both.
John Frisch, who works
in the agriculture pro-
duction fi eld, will run for
reelection to Position 3,
and Jamie Dickenson, a
clinic manager, is run-
ning for reelection to
Position 4.
Elgin School Board
Incumbents fi led for
both its open positions.
Chuck Anderson, a
general contractor, is set
to run for Position 3, and
Lara Moore, vice pres-
ident for fi nance and
administration at Eastern
Oregon University, will
run for Position 5.
Imbler School Board
Two of the school
board’s three open posi-
tions will have contested
races.
Three candidates fi led
for Position 3: Bud Whit-
comb, the owner and
operator of a custom
body and paint shop;
Tim Phelps, a sales and
marketing director; and
Joseph “Joe’’ Fisher Jr., a
building offi cial.
Dan McDonald, the
incumbent, did not fi le for
reelection.
Two candidates fi led
for Position 5: Lavar
Bowles, who works in the
construction management
fi eld, and Jason Beck, a
rancher. Wade Bingaman,
the incumbent, did not
fi le.
Position 4 also is up
for election and one can-
didate fi led, incumbent
Pam Glenn.
La Grande
School Board
One of the school
board’s four positions
up for election will be
contested.
That race will involve
Position 4 where cyclist
Elijah Romer is chal-
lenging incumbent Randy
Shaw, an auto body
technician.
Incumbent Danelle
Lindsey-Wilson, the
owner of a hair salon, is
running for reelection
to Position 1; incumbent
Bruce Kevan, a retired
educator, fi led for Posi-
tion 5; and Jake Hanson,
the owner and operator
of an auto salvage
company, fi led for Posi-
tion 2.
Michelle Perry,
the Position 2 incum-
bent, did not fi le for
reelection.
North Powder
School Board
Positions 1 and 2 are
up for election and the
incumbent for each fi led
for reelection.
Drew Martin fi led to
run for Position 1 and
Danyell Nesser, a
receptionist, fi led for
Position 2.
Union School Board
Positions 1, 2 and 3
are open, and incumbents
were the lone candidates
to fi le.
Mark Wing, who is
retired, is running for
Position 1; Jocelyn Jones,
a retired educator, fi led
for Position 2; and Deb
Baker fi led for Position 3.