FROM PAGE ONE
THURSDAY, MAY 6, 2021
THE OBSERVER — 5A
15 counties creep out of ‘extreme’ COVID-19 risk
By GARY A. WARNER
Oregon Capital Bureau
SALEM — The indoor
dining ban and other
major restrictions under
COVID-19 rules will be
lifted Friday, May 7, for
15 counties because a key
metric was missed by .1%.
Gov. Kate Brown
announced late Tuesday
that 15 counties put on
the extreme risk level for
spread of the virus — the
highest of the four-tier risk
levels — could operate
under the high risk stan-
dards instead.
“Oregon no longer meets
the statewide metrics,”
Brown said in a statement.
The extreme risk level
shuts down indoor dining,
limits crowd sizes, caps
entertainment and exer-
cise activities and requires
most businesses to close
by 11 p.m. Visits to resi-
dents of nursing homes are
curtailed. Under high risk,
restaurants can off er indoor
IMBLER
Continued from Page 1A
the parents of a son who
is an Imbler High School
freshman and a daughter
who is an Imbler High
senior.
Fisher is a 1993 grad-
uate of Union High School
and has an associate’s
degree in architectural
engineering technology
from Mount Hood Com-
munity College. He has
been a volunteer in the
Imbler School District for
several years, assisting
with its high school FFA
program.
Fisher said what he
likes best about the school
district is how its teachers
and the community sup-
port the activities stu-
dents are involved with,
including FFA, sports and
dining and other restric-
tions are loosened.
Brown’s statement ended
a confusing delay of several
hours beyond the normal
release of risk level ratings.
In early April, when
infections were on the
wane, Brown announced
that counties that would
normally be in the extreme
risk level could stay at the
high risk level as long as
hospitalizations statewide
didn’t top 300. The policy
also required that hospital-
izations rise more than 15
percent to keep the severe
limits in place.
The period on which risk
levels will be based begin-
ning Friday is from April
18 to May 1. Oregon saw a
statewide rise in infections.
The state had 11,266 cases
— 265.9 per 100,000. Pos-
itive tests made up 6.4% of
all results.
But on Tuesday, hos-
pitals reported 345
COVID-19 patients, and the
percentage growth of hos-
pitalizations was pegged at
14.9%.
The .1% miss led to a
major policy u-turn.
“Based on today’s num-
bers, I am keeping my com-
mitment to Oregonians,”
Brown said.
As of Friday, no counties
will be under extreme risk
limits. The new numbers
put 24 counties at high risk,
four at moderate risk, and
eight at lower risk.
Oregon Health Authority
projections show the state
can handle the current rate
of demand for hospital
beds.
Brown also said she
did not expect the state to
move back to the extreme
level again at any point.
The state is expecting a
major increase in vaccine
shipments from the federal
government.
“Vaccinations are still
our best path to protecting
our loved ones, and staying
Future Business Leaders of
America.
Phelps said he is run-
ning because he wants to
continue giving back.
“I feel that as a parent
of school-aged children it
is important to be involved
in the community,” Phelps
said.
Phelps has served as a
volunteer for youth fl ag
football and Optimist foot-
ball programs. He is a
1992 graduate of Imbler
High School and attended
Eastern Oregon Univer-
sity for three years. He
is director of sales and
marketing for Barreto
Manufacturing.
Phelps and his wife,
Jenny, are the parents of
three children, ages 6, 10
and 12.
The candidate said
he appreciates how hard
everyone in the school dis-
trict and the community
work to help one another.
“It is like a big family,”
Phelps said.
Whitcomb did not
return phone calls to dis-
cuss his candidacy.
Union County Clerk’s
Offi ce election fi ling
records indicate Whitcomb
is a graduate of Kamiah
High School in Kamiah,
Idaho, and Lewis-Clark
State College in Lewiston,
Idaho.
The race for Position
3 is one of two contested
school board races in the
Imbler School District.
A second contested race
is for Position 5 between
Lavar Bowles, a project
manager for a construction
company, and Jason Beck,
a rancher. The Observer
published a story about
the Position 3 race in the
Tuesday, May 4, edition.
MUSEUM
Continued from Page 1A
and Chime, in the 1960s.
Miller’s collection
includes an Atmos clock
made in the mid-1950s,
which does not need to be
wound manually. It gets the
energy it needs to run from
temperature and atmo-
spheric pressure changes
in the environment, Miller
said.
“They were very expen-
sive, but they kept good
time,” he said.
A 400-day clock is
another item to catch the
attention of visitors. The
clock, which has a glass
cover, will run for 400 days
after being wound one time.
“It just needs to be
wound once a year,” Miller
said.
Miller, who earned
a degree in clock repair
from Oregon Institute of
Technology in the early
1950s, has been repairing
clocks and watches for six
decades. It is a labor of love
for Miller. He said it was a
delight to work on clocks,
and he fi nds the tasks
relaxing.
“I have a grand time
working on clocks,” he said.
May 9 will mark the fi rst
time in about 18 months the
Union County Museum, at
331 S. Main St. in Union,
has been open to the public.
The museum, which tradi-
tionally opens on Mother’s
Day and closes in October,
was shut down all of 2020
because of the COVID-19
pandemic. It will be able
to open its doors again on
Sunday because of falling
Alex Wittwer/The Observer
Volunteer Jerry Brounstein hangs up a frame of an antique triptych at the
Union County Museum in Union Tuesday, May 4, 2021. The museum is
set to open Sunday, May 9, after the pandemic kept it closed more than
a year.
infection rates in Union
County.
Social distancing and
other COVID-19 rules will
be in eff ect at the opening.
Everyone coming has
to wear masks, and the
museum will not serve
refreshments.
Other new additions to
the museum include wed-
ding dresses Union County
women wore in the 1940s
and 1950s.
“They are in very good
condition,” said Sharon
Hohstadt, a member of the
Union County Museum
Board.
Hohstadt is among many
community volunteers
working hard to get the
museum in tip-top shape
before the opening. The list
of volunteers also includes
Ann Rodriguez, who is
happy the public will be
able to visit the museum
again. She said not having
the museum open would
have been sad.
“Even during a pan-
demic we need history,”
Rodriguez said.
She said it is important
to have a place to refl ect on
what the world was once
like when “technology was
not raging” and things were
calmer.
The Union County
Museum will be open May
9 from 1-4 p.m. There is no
admission fee on opening
day.
The museum’s reg-
ular schedule begins next
week when it will be open
from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Wednesday through Sat-
urday. The schedule will
remain in place at least
through September. Admis-
sion will be $5 for adult,
$3 for students and free for
those younger than 6.
ISLAND
EXPRESS
LUBE CENTER & CAR WASH
on track to fully reopen
our economy by the end of
June,” Brown said
Political friction in
Oregon has increased with
Brown’s extreme risk deci-
sion and again extending
her emergency powers, fi rst
put in place in March 2020,
through at least June 28.
In the most concrete bid
to curb Brown’s authority,
the House voted 28-27
Tuesday against a motion
to consider a bill that would
give the Legislature a larger
say in governor’s declara-
tions of emergency.
“Oregonians deserve a
balance of power between
their separate branches of
government again,” said
House Minority Leader
Christine Drazan, R-Canby.
Brown and the Oregon
Health Authority Director
Pat Allen have pointed to
Oregon’s safety during the
pandemic that has killed
over 575,000 Americans.
Oregon has had the third
OREGON COUNTY RISK CATEGORIES
EFFECTIVE MAY 7–13
Lower Risk (8)
Gilliam
Harney
Lake
Morrow
Sherman
Union
Wallowa
Wheeler
Moderate Risk (4)
Coos (Moved from
High)
Curry
Hood River (Moved
from High)
Tillamook
High Risk (24)
Baker (Moved from
Extreme)
Benton
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Lane (Moved from
Extreme)
Lincoln
Linn (Moved from
Extreme)
Malheur (Moved from
Moderate)
Marion (Moved from
Extreme)
Multnomah (Moved
from Extreme)
Polk (Moved from
Extreme)
Umatilla
Wasco (Moved from
Extreme)
Washington
Yamhill
Extreme Risk (0)
lowest per capita number of
cases in the nation, at 4,432
per 100,000 during the
entire pandemic.
Brown will next
announce any revisions in
risk levels on May 11.
Restrictions for each
level can be found at
sharedsystems.dhsoha.state.
or.us/DHSForms/Served/
le3461.pdf.
A full list of county risk
levels and explanation of
data is at www.oregon.gov/
oha/covid19/Documents/
DataReports/Weekly-Coun-
ty-Metrics.pdf.
dose returned to get their
second dose, according to
the data.
Statewide, nearly 1.6
million Oregonians have
received the vaccine, or
approximately 42% of
the state’s population,
according to OHA. Rural
counties such as Union,
Baker and Umatilla fall
slightly behind with a vac-
cination rate of roughly
30%.
People who are still
wanting to receive their
fi rst dose of the vaccine
can sign up through the
state’s website getvacci-
nated.oregon.gov or by
scheduling an appointment
through CHD.
Retailers such as
Walmart also off er free
vaccines to the public. No
insurance is required to get
a dose.
“We’re trying hard to
help make sure we get
enough to cover the needs
that we have here,” Bro-
goitti said.
CLINIC
Continued from Page 1A
beginning,” Brogoitti said.
Union County has
approximately 8,000 vacci-
nated residents, according
to the Oregon Health
Authority, which works
out to around 30% of the
county having received
at least one dose of a
COVID-19 vaccine. Bro-
goitti said almost everyone
who received their fi rst
HOUSES
Continued from Page 1A
low-cost of entry allows
fi rst-time homebuyers to
get a foot in a market that
increased dramatically
since the 2009 housing
crisis, which saw foreclo-
sures across the country
and downwardly spi-
raling home prices that
left many with negative
equity. And older home-
buyers are interested in
smaller spaces, due to chil-
dren leaving the home and
having excess space.
Tiny homes often are
confused with modular
or manufactured homes,
which Fehrenbacher said
have lower quality than
her company’s tiny homes.
While manufactured
homes have improved
over the years, the stigma
around them remains, as
well as often true stereo-
types of cheaper materials
and workmanship in their
construction.
For Fehrenbacher, the
focus is on quality.
“We defi nitely build a
heavy and nice house,” she
said.
There is a drawback,
however. In Oregon, tiny
homes are technically
illegal to sell — instead,
Fehrenbacher markets
her homes as “trailers” or
“cabins” to work around
the prohibition.
Of the workers at Mega
Tiny Homes, Ray Valdez is
the most dedicated. Prior to
his employment, he would
walk to the manufacturer
each work day, sit down
for lunch and wait for his
Alex Wittwer/The Observer
Sparks fl y as Ray Valdez, an employee with Mega Tiny Homes in La
Grande, cuts a steel beam on Friday, April 30, 2021, for use in the con-
struction of a tiny house.
Alex Wittwer/The Observer
Stacey Bowman wet sands a countertop for construction of a Mega Tiny
Homes dwelling Friday, April 30, 2021. Bowman was one of the fi rst to
help Megan Fehrenbacher build her tiny home business.
chance to work.
At fi rst, Fehrenbacher
wasn’t interested in hiring
the man. After a week,
Valdez left. Fehrenbacher
asked her employees which
car he drove. They replied
he didn’t. She ran after the
man and hired him on for
a week. She said Valdez is
her most crucial employee.
“He’s the man,” she
said.
As home prices around
the state continue to
rise, Fehrenbacher said
she hoped the legisla-
tion around tiny homes
changes, and her business
helps to solve the housing
issues in La Grande and
Union County.
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